Hello mystery fans! I finished two cozies recently that made me realize my favorite kind are the zany ones–or ones that have, at least, a zany side character. So here are a few of my favorite series if you need some ridiculous laughs in your life, and of course I have a bunch of recent releases for you too.
Sponsored by Flatiron Books, publishers of I Know Who You Are by Alice Feeney.
Meet Aimee Sinclair: the actress everyone thinks they know but can’t remember where from. Except one person. Someone knows Aimee very well. They know who she is and they know what she did.
Zany Aunt And Her Funeral Home
Secrets, Lies, & Crawfish Pies (Romaine Wilder #1) by Abby L. Vandiver: The first in the series starts with Romaine Wilder returning to Roble, Texas after big city life as a Medical Examiner. Her job was downsized and her love life is, let’s say, “pending.” She doesn’t want to get involved in solving murder cases but her Auntie Zanne, who owns a funeral home, sure does and she’s dragging Wilder with her. In the second book, Love, Hopes, & Marriage Tropes, we have Wilder way more invested in solving crimes–a groom dead on his wedding day–and also debating planting official roots in Roble. Auntie Zanne brings all the zaniness in this series as she accuses wildly, and publicly, anyone she thinks of wrongdoing–including calling out who she thinks is secret FBI. I like watching Wilder grow in the series and am always here for Zanne’s antics.
Fun Long Running Series (Tw Peeping Tom)
Murder With Peacocks (Meg Langslow, #1) by Donna Andrews: This is the start to a super long running series (26!) which always has an animal in the title that somehow participates in the story–but not as detectives or anything. The series starts with Meg Langslow in Virginia as maid of honor of three weddings and nothing is going right! The zany comes in mostly from all the ludicrous things that happen in this small-town as she tries to keep everything moving to the end goal of completing the three weddings and no longer having to be involved in anything. But of course there’s a murder, and possible poisoning, and accidents… Will she figure it out and will anyone make it down the aisle?! If you want a fun series with laughs, from the situations and Langslow’s commentary, you’ll have a good marathon with this one, which has audiobooks and the same narrator throughout.
Everyone’s Zany + All The Laughs
Skinny Dipping with Murder (An Otter Lake Mystery #1) by Auralee Wallace: Everyone is zany in this one and there’s physical comedy type laughs and witty banter. Every time Erica Bloom visits her hometown–where her love interest is the sheriff and her mom runs a hippy retreat–a murder occurs. Naturally it only makes sense for her to finally move back, and start that security firm her best friend is pushing for. And maybe she’ll be more patient with her mom? And stop wanting to strangle her best friend with all his antics? And maybe, just maybe, finally properly date the sheriff? There’s plenty of mysteries, a few fun holiday themed books, and even a snowed-in-with-strangers-someone-is-the-killer book. This is a series (six books so far!) I’d love to see get audiobooks and an adaptation series.
Recent Releases
The Missing Years by Lexie Elliott (Mystery set in Scotland–my next audiobook.)
The Last Job: “The Bad Grandpas” and the Hatton Garden Heist by Dan Bilefsky (True crime)
The Missing Corpse (Kommissar Dupin #4) by Jean-Luc Bannalec (Murder mystery in France.)
Throw Me to the Wolves by Patrick McGuinness (Past and present mystery.)
Transcription by Kate Atkinson (Paperback) (Fantastic spy: Full review) (TW suicide)
Death Comes in Through the Kitchen by Teresa Dovalpage (Paperback) (When your girlfriend is murdered and the government takes your passport… Full review) (TW: rape/ transphobia & homophobia)
Probable Claws (Mrs. Murphy #27) by Rita Mae Brown (Paperback) (Cozy mystery)
Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.
Until next time, keep investigating! And in the meantime, come talk books with me on Twitter, Instagram, and Litsy–you can find me under Jamie Canavés.
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